Norfolkline Reveals New 24/7 Passenger Facilities at Dunkirk Port
9th April 2010
Norfolkline announced today that phase one of its rejuvenation programme to upgrade passenger facilities at its Dunkirk Port Terminal has been completed. This forms part of the leading ferry operator’s strategy to enhance the travel experience for its customers.
In the Dunkirk terminal, passengers are now able to benefit from the new 24/7 refreshment, entertainment and comfortable seating facilities on the first floor of the terminal, which has been completely refurbished to a very high standard.
The new facilities include state of the art food and drink vending machines, which offer cold sandwiches snacks, soft drinks and high quality hot coffee made from ground beans. They also include microwaveable food that can be heated in the microwaves provided. Additional vending machines are located on the ground floor in the reception area and in an all-weather area within the car park.
The entertainment facilities include air hockey and video games, suitable for both adults and children. Five LCD televisions have been included to enable passengers to catch up on news and current affairs.
Other improvements include brand new menus in all onboard restaurants created by food development and chef trainer, Matt McPhail, and Brian Smith, general manager of Norfolkline’s retail and food service. The new menus offer passengers a greater choice at a variety of prices, especially for regular passengers who may want to try a different dish on each crossing.
“We are really pleased with the feedback on the new menus, which have been introduced onboard in the Bistro and self-service restaurant,” said Brian Smith. “The Bistro menu has proved so popular that it has been at maximum capacity since the menu was introduced in December last year. The most popular dish is the pan seared sea bass fillet with warm olive oil, garlic, lemon and cherry tomato dressing.
“We have also introduced three new breakfast and three new dinner menus in our self-service restaurant, which were phased in during January 2010. Although there are nine choices on the dinner menu, with pricing options of £4,50, £7.50 and £9.50, we have been pleasantly surprised to find that the majority of diners in the self-service restaurant choose the £9.50 Chef’s Special of lamb or beef with seasonal vegetables and potatoes.
“Before introducing the menus we wanted to ensure staff were fully trained, so food development and chef trainer, Matt McPhail, gave individual training to each chef in the galley to make sure they knew how to prepare the new dishes properly. This ensures consistency of service across all three vessels.”
Phase two of the rejuvenation programme will see the addition of a 15 metre portacabin located in the car parking area, which will serve as a convenient retail outlet for passengers wanting to buy wine, beer, spirits, confectionery and a selection of groceries.
Improvements to freight facilities are also planned in the next couple of months, offering freight lorry drivers similar refreshment facilities in convenient external shelters.